ATV having arrangement for a passenger

ABSTRACT

An all-terrain vehicle includes a plurality of ground-engaging members and a frame supported by the plurality of ground-engaging members and having a front end and a rear end. The all-terrain vehicle further includes a straddle seat coupled to the frame and an attachment rack supported by the frame. The attachment rack has a first portion which defines an outer surface of the attachment rack and is comprised of a first material and a second portion which is positioned at least partially inward of the first portion and is comprised of a second material.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/464,777, filed May 4, 2012, which is a divisional of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 12/012,587, filed Feb. 4, 2008, the completedisclosures of which are expressly incorporated by reference herein.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates to all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and morespecifically, to arrangements for use by a passenger on an ATV.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY

Generally, all terrain vehicles (“ATVs”) and utility vehicles (“UVs”)are used to carry one or two passengers and a small amount of cargo overa variety of terrains. Due to increasing recreational interest in ATVs,specialty ATVs, such as those used for trail riding, and cargo haulinghave entered the market place. Most ATVs include an engine includingbetween one and three cylinders. Most ATVs include a straddle or saddletype seat positioned above the engine. Seating systems for supportingpeople in a seated position on such vehicles, for example, on ATVs, arewell-known. Most systems generally involve a straddle type seat beingsecured to a frame structure.

Conventional straddle type seats on recreational and utility vehiclesgenerally hold a number of people, and most commonly, the seats functionin supporting one or two persons. In one example, a two-person seatingsystem is designed with an elongated bench portion of the straddle typeseat so as to support one person in front of the other. In anotherexample, discrete seats bottoms are provided for supporting one personin front of the other, with the passenger elevated in relation to thedriver.

It is desirable on ATVs to provide the most comfortable andergonomically pleasing ride for either one or two ATV riders.Embodiments of the invention can be used to generally overcome the aboveshortcomings as well as others.

According to an illustrative embodiment of the present disclosure, anall-terrain vehicle comprises a plurality of ground-engaging members anda frame supported by the plurality of ground-engaging members and has afront end and a rear end. The all-terrain vehicle further comprises astraddle seat coupled to the frame and an attachment rack supported bythe frame. The attachment rack has a first portion which defines anouter surface of the attachment rack and is comprised of a firstmaterial and a second portion which is positioned at least partiallyinward of the first portion and is comprised of a second material.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, an all-terrain vehiclecomprises a plurality of ground-engaging members, a frame supported bythe plurality of ground-engaging members and extending along alongitudinal axis, and a straddle seat coupled to the frame. Theall-terrain vehicle further comprises an attachment rack supported bythe frame. The attachment rack has a polymeric surface and at least onemetallic member coupled to the attachment rack. The at least onemetallic member extends within at least one opening in the polymericsurface.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, an attachment rackfor an all-terrain vehicle comprises an internal metallic portion, anexternal polymeric portion, and at least one mounting portion configuredto support at least one of an accessory and cargo on the attachmentrack.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of vehicle described;

FIG. 2 is a left side plan view of the vehicle of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the vehicle of FIGS. 1 and 2;

FIG. 4 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 showing the pedestalsremoved;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of the pedestals of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged view of the passenger hand grips;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view through lines 7-7 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a partial top plan view showing the passenger seat and handgrip area;

FIG. 9 is an exploded view looking upwardly at the disassembled handgrip and rear accessory panel;

FIG. 10 shows an alternate hand grip;

FIG. 11 shows the passenger seat exploded away from the vehicle;

FIG. 12 shows an enlarged view of the passenger seat of FIG. 11;

FIG. 13 shows an exploded view of the entire passenger seat assembly;

FIG. 14 shows an underside perspective view of a portion of thepassenger seat assembly of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 shows an enlarged view of the receiving area of the vehicle forreceiving the passenger seat;

FIG. 16 shows a side view of the seat and vehicle with the chassisremoved;

FIG. 17 is a view similar to that of FIG. 15 showing the seat in alatched position; and

FIG. 18 shows an accessory trunk usable in lieu of the passenger seat.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The embodiments disclosed below are not intended to be exhaustive or tolimit the invention to the precise forms disclosed in the followingdetailed description. Rather, the embodiments are chosen and describedso that others skilled in the art may utilize their teachings. Forexample, while the following description refers primarily to an allterrain vehicle, it should be understood that the invention may haveapplication to other types of vehicles, such as snowmobiles,motorcycles, watercraft, utility vehicles, scooters, golf carts, andmopeds.

Referring initially to FIGS. 1 and 2, one illustrative embodiment of anall terrain vehicle (ATV) 10 is shown. ATV 10 includes a frame 12, achassis 14 mounted on the frame 12, where the frame 12 is supported byfront and rear tires 16, 18, respectively. ATV 10 also includes a frontend 20 and a rear end 22. Front end 20 and rear end 22 are separated byhandlebar assembly 24, straddle-type seat 26, drive-train 28, andfoot-wells 30. Foot-wells 30 are located on both lateral sides of ATV10, and flank the straddle-type seat 26. Front end 20 also includesfront accessory panel 32 which may include a tool storage compartment.Handlebar assembly 24 is operably coupled to front wheels 16 to allow arider to steer ATV 10 when supported by straddle-type seat 26. Rear end22 also includes rear accessory panel 34 which may also include a toolstorage compartment. Front panel 32 and rear panel 34 may also includean accessory coupling system such as the one disclosed in U.S. Pat. No.7,055,454, the disclosure of which is expressly incorporated byreference herein. Positioned rearward of the straddle type seat 26 is anauxiliary passenger seat 36, which as described herein, is selectivelyremovable from the ATV 10.

ATV 10 incorporates many features or accessories which are useful to apassenger or driver of the ATV. First, the ATV 10 includes a pedestalassembly 40 incorporated into the foot-wells 30, which cooperate withremovable passenger seat 36. Furthermore, passenger seat 36 isselectively added or removed from ATV 10 by way of a latch assembly 42.Hand grips 44 flank the removable seat and are attached to the rearaccessory panel 34. The rear accessory panel also includes an integratedcup holder 46 (FIG. 6), and rack tie-downs 48 (FIG. 3). With the abovegenerally described vehicle, other features will be introduced and morefully described below.

With respect to FIGS. 1-3, the pedestal assembly 40 will be described.As shown, foot-wells 30 conform to the general shape of the chassis 14.Chassis 14 is provided with a shroud portion 50 (FIG. 2), a side panel52 (FIGS. 2 and 4) beneath the straddle-type seat 26, front fenders 54(FIG. 3), and rear fenders 56 (FIG. 4). Meanwhile, foot-wells 30 includea horizontal platform portion 60 (FIG. 3), a side panel portion (FIG.3), a forward riser 64 (FIG. 3) which conforms with the front fender 54,and a rear riser 66 (FIG. 4) which conforms to the rear fender 56. Asshown in any of the FIGS. 1-4, platform portion 60 includes a treadsurface 70 for receiving the feet of the driver when seated on thestraddle-type seat. As shown best in FIG. 1, pedestal assembly 40 iscomprised of a fixed pedestal portion 80 and a removable pedestalportion 82 (FIG. 4). As best shown in FIG. 4, pedestal portion 80includes an upper tread surface 84.

With respect now to FIG. 5, removable pedestal portion 82 is comprisedof a unitary molded pedestal block 90 having corner pedestal portions 92which are profiled for placement on upper tread surface 84 wherefasteners (not shown) can be inserted through apertures 94 forconnection of the pedestal block 90 to pedestal portion 80. Removablepedestal portion 82 further includes features to assist in keeping therider's foot on the pedestal, namely, an outer ridge 96, and a pluralityof gripping treads such as 98 a, 98 b, 98 c and 98 d. Furthermore, aremovable and replaceable rubber insert 100 is insertable into a slot102 in pedestal block 90 for gripping the shoe or boot of the rider.

The purpose and use of the removable pedestal portion 82 is twofold.First, it is anticipated that for any given chassis size, multiplepassenger seats 36 could be used that have varying heights. As theheight of the seat changes, the location and height of the passenger'sfoot also changes, thus requiring the additional pedestal. Thus, in theevent the seat is, for example, co-planar with the straddle-type seat26, the pedestal portion 82 may be removed and the passenger's footwould rest directly on upper tread surface 84; whereas when a higherseat is utilized, for example, passenger seat 36 shown herein, pedestal82 is used and the passenger's foot is positioned on the multiple treads98 a-98 d. Second, with multiple sizes of passengers, and particularlyheight, it would be best ergonomically to have multiple heights to allowfor the different height or length of the passenger's legs. Thus, for ataller passenger, the removable pedestal portion 82 could be removed tolower the vertical positioning of the passenger's foot.

With reference now to FIG. 6, hand grip 44 is shown in a positionmounted to a top surface 120 of rear accessory panel 34. As shown bestin FIGS. 6, 7 and 9, hand grips 44 include base members 122 having sidehand grip bars 124 and 126 and end hand grip bars 128 connected bycorner joining members 130. As shown best in FIGS. 7 and 9, base member122 includes a mounting lip 132 adjacent to an end thereof for mountingpurposes as described herein. As best shown in FIG. 7, base member 122is comprised of a two component member having an internal rigidifiedsection 140 and an overmolded portion 142. The rigidified section 140could be comprised of any suitable structural material such as plasticor aluminum for example, whereas the overmolded material 142 would be asofter material such as a rubber-like overmolded material, for vibrationresistance as will be described further herein. In the embodiment shown,cast aluminum is anticipated.

With respect still to FIGS. 7 and 9, the base members 122, andparticularly the internal rigidified section 140 is comprised of amounting portion 144 which projects downwardly from the overmoldedportion 142 to define a mounting shoulder 146 as described herein.Mounting portion 144 includes mounting apertures 148 profiled to receivefasteners 150. As shown best in FIG. 7, rear accessory panel 34 includesa mounting well 160 having a top mounting surface 162 and a rear slotopening 164 which is profiled at least as wide as mounting lip 132. Itshould be appreciated then that hand grips 44 are mounted to rearaccessory panel 34 by first inserting mounting lip 132 through slotopening 164 in a manner such that hand grips 44 are then rotatedcounterclockwise as viewed in FIG. 7 to a position where fasteners 150may be inserted through a bottom of rear accessory panel 34 (see FIG.9). When the fasteners 150 are fully tightened, as in the position ofFIG. 7, a bottom surface of the mounting portion 144 (FIG. 9) is flushwith top mounting surface 162 and the shoulder 146 (FIG. 9) is somewhatcompressed against, top surface 120. It should be appreciated that thecompression of the resilient overmolded portion 142 provides a vibrationresistance against the vibration of the vehicle passing through to thepassenger's hands, while gripping the hand grips 44.

As mounted, the hand grips 44, and particularly the side hand grip bars124, 126, extend forwardly and upwardly by an angle α relative to ahorizontal plane (see FIG. 7) and the side hand grip bars 124 and 126extend forwardly and outwardly from the longitudinal axis by an angle βas shown in FIG. 8. Meanwhile, the end hand grip bars 128 extend at anangle φ relative to transverse (see FIG. 8). By this configuration, apassenger has three separate positions for each hand for gripping,namely, either of the bars 124, 126 or 128, and thus the passenger mayfind the most ergonomically comfortable position for gripping. It isanticipated, however, that a passenger would hold the end hand grip bars128, for example, when traversing rolling terrain where the passenger'sbody would the natural tendency to move in the vertical direction,whereas the passenger would more than likely have the tendency to gripeither of the hand grip bars 124, 126, when traversing side to sideterrain, when the passenger's body would have the natural tendency tomove side-to-side.

FIG. 10 shows an alternate embodiment of the hand grip 44′ where theside hand grip bars 124′ include integrated heating elements such as 125for selectively warming the side hand grip bars 124′ and resultantly thepassenger's hands.

With reference now to FIGS. 6 and 9, the integrated cup holder 46 willbe described in greater detail. As shown best in FIG. 6, cup holder 46is shown located directly between the hand grip 44, which is chosen dueto a convenient location for the passenger's hands, although it shouldbe appreciated that this cup holder could be positioned anywhere on therear accessory panel 34, and, for example, anywhere on the vehicleitself. However in this particular embodiment, the cup holder is showndirectly integrated with the rear accessory panel 34.

As shown best in FIG. 9, rear accessory panel 34 is shown from anunderside, where it can be seen that the rear accessory panel iscomprised of a one piece molded construction where a cup holder well 180projects downwardly from top surface 120 of the rear accessory panel 34.Well 180 includes a drain hole 182 integrally formed therein. Asmentioned above, rear accessory panel 34 is mounted on top of the rearfenders 56, and in the embodiment of FIG. 9, rear fenders 56 are mountedon top of a rear portion of frame 12. As shown, rear fender 56 includesa complementary well 190, which is profiled to receive well 180 and well190 includes a drain hole 192 therethrough. As shown in FIG. 9, whilethe wells 180, 190 are positioned in a substantially coaxial position,the drain holes 182 and 192 are intentionally misaligned, that is, theyare each located on opposite sides of the same transverse axis, toprevent rocks or dirt from the underside of rear fender 56 fromprojecting through to the passenger through drain hole 182, yet fluidmay drain through the drain holes 182, 192.

With respect now to FIG. 6, a retaining assembly 200 is provided,attached to the rear accessory panel 34 and includes netting 202 held bystraps 204 to the top surface 120 of rear accessory panel 34 by way offasteners. It should be appreciated that either or both of the netting202 and straps 204 could be elastic such that bottle 210 is held with adownward force within the cup holder 46.

With respect again to FIG. 6, rack tie-downs 48 will be described ingreater detail. As with most ATVs or utility vehicles, it is often timesnecessary to use a rope or bungee cord to retain articles to the topsurface of the rear accessory panel, for example, tool boxes or otheritems used in hunting, fishing, camping or farming. For this purpose,integrated rack tie-downs 48 are included where the plastic of the rearaccessory panel 34 is molded to include an opening at 220 to expose alength of an internal structural rib or frame 222 such as a metal rod ortube piece. This tube piece 222 could be a peripheral frame piece orcould be separate segments located along the length or periphery, orlocated anywhere along the internal area of panel 34. It should also beappreciated that tie-downs 48 could also be incorporated into frontpanel 32.

With reference now to FIGS. 11-14, the passenger's seat 36 will bedescribed in greater detail. With reference first to FIGS. 12 and 13,passenger seat 36 includes seat back 240, seat back frame 242, seatbottom 244, seat frame 246, latch lanyard 248, and spring latch assembly250. A latch base plate 252 is mounted within the vehicle as will bedescribed herein.

With respect first to FIG. 13, seat frame 246 includes a seat back frameportion 270, a seat bottom frame portion 272 and a transition portion274 extending therebetween. Seat back frame portion 270 includes anaperture therethrough at 276, while seat bottom frame portion 272includes an aperture at 278. An embossed channel 280 extends between theapertures 276 and 278 and extends generally along the transition section274 as shown. As shown best in FIG. 12, rubber isolation mounts 282extend from a bracket 284 mounted on the back side of seat frame 246.

With reference still to FIG. 13, spring latch assembly 250 includes areceiver plate 290, spring 292, spring block 294 and back up plate 296.Receiver plate 290 includes a pin receiving aperture 300 and spring 292includes a spring portion 302 overlapping aperture 300. Thus as shown,receiver plate 290, spring 292, block 294 and back up plate 296 stacktogether and may be fastened to frame portion 272 by way of fasteners310. Block 294 and back up plate 296 also include throughholes 312, 314,respectively, which align with aperture 300 as described herein. Withreference still to FIG. 13, lanyard 248 includes a strap 320 having apull loop 322 at one end and a connection link 324 at the opposite end.Link 324 is connected to release member 326 having engagement members328 as will be described herein. Link 324 and release member 326 areattached together by way of rivets 330.

With reference now to FIG. 12, seat bottom 244 includes a molded frameportion 350 comprised of corner pedestal portion 352, 354, 356 and 358,which define a central recess portion 360 for receiving spring latchassembly 250 as shown. Each of the pedestals 352-358 also include rubberisolation mounts 364. Thus as shown in FIG. 12, fasteners 310 arepositioned through receiver plate 290 and with spring 292 positioned onthe plate 290 fasteners can extend through the block 294, back up plate296 and are attached to frame portion 272. It should be appreciated thatrelease member 326 is moveably trapped between plate 290 and block 294.It should also be appreciated that strap 320 is laced through apertures278 to lie within channel 280 and exits through aperture 276 to positionloop 322 on the backside of seat 36 as shown in FIG. 12. As also shownin FIG. 12, latch assembly 250 is mounted within the recessed portion360 and seat frame 246 is fastened to seat bottom frame 350 and seatback frame 242 to hold the entire assembly together.

With reference still to FIG. 13, latch base plate 252 includes mountingplate 380 having a mounting pin 382 upstanding therefrom having atapered end 384 and a groove 386. With reference now to FIG. 14, block294 includes threaded bosses 388 profiled to threadably receivefasteners 310. Block 294 further includes U-shaped channels 390, posts392, and a central post 394 which forms opening 312, and where post 394is formed with a cut-away portion 395. As also shown in FIG. 14, releasemember 326 includes trunnions 396 on each side thereof, and are profiledfor receipt within the U-shaped channels 390. The engagement members 328include gripping channels 397. Finally, spring 292 includes clip ends398.

The spring latch assembly 250 is assembled as follows: Strap 320 andlink 324 are first attached to release member 326 by way of rivets 330.Trunnions 396 are then positioned in U-shaped channels 390. Spring 292is positioned with spring portion 302 positioned in cutaway 395 and ingripping channels 397, and with clip ends 398 positioned in apertures ofposts 392. Receiver plate 290 and back-up plate 296 are then positionedover threaded bosses 388, and fasteners 310 may be threadably receivedtherein, to retain the assembly in place.

With reference now to FIG. 15, vehicle 10 is shown where vehicleincludes an opening 400, intermediate rear fenders, behind straddle-typeseat 26, and through the chassis. Base plate 252 is shown mounteddirectly to longitudinally extending frame portions 410 of frame 12. Pin382 is also shown poised for receipt for locking with the spring latchassembly 250. Finally, rear accessory panel 34 includes a receiving area420 having receiving openings 422 profiled to receive isolation mounts282 (FIG. 12). As such, isolation mounts 282 are configured to contactrear accessory panel 34.

Thus as described, seat 36 is attached to vehicle 10 by positioning seatframe 350 within opening 400 such that pin 382 aligns with opening 300(FIG. 13) in receiving plate 290, as shown in FIGS. 15-17. It should beappreciated that when pin 382 is aligned with opening 300, springportion 302 resiles into pin groove 386 to retain the seat assembly inposition. When the seat needs to be removed, loop 322 of strap 320 ispulled which causes release plate 326 to rotate about trunnions 396.Gripping channels grip spring portion 302 and disengage spring 292 frompin 382, which allows the seat to pull straight out of opening 400. Itshould be noted that the movable portion of the latch assembly 42, thatis release member 326 and spring 292, are movably attached to the seat.It should also be noted that lanyard strap 320 is pulled generallyvertically to release the latch assembly 42 from the pin 382. Therefore,the directional component of the force on the lanyard 248 assists in theremoval of the passenger seat 46. As mentioned above, isolation mounts282 are positioned in receiving openings 422 which provides forvibration dampening between the frame of the vehicle and the frame ofthe passenger seat.

Finally, and with reference to FIG. 18, an auxiliary trunk 500 is alsousable, in lieu of the passenger seat 36 where the trunk 500 includes aframe portion 502 which is configured in a similar manner to frame 350and would snap latch to pin 382 in a like manner. In addition, latchmembers such as 506 could be incorporated which are referred to asApplicants' “LOCK-N-RIDE”, and which are shown and described inApplicants' U.S. Pat. No. 7,222,582, the disclosure of which isincorporated herein by reference.

What is claimed is:
 1. An all-terrain vehicle, comprising: a pluralityof ground-engaging members; a frame supported by the plurality ofground-engaging members and having a front end and a rear end; anoperator seat coupled to the frame; and an attachment rack supported bythe frame, the attachment rack having a first portion defining an outersurface of the attachment rack and comprised of a first material and asecond portion positioned at least partially inward of the first portionand comprised of a second material, wherein the first portion has awidth extending from a right side of the vehicle to a left side of thevehicle and includes at least one opening and the second portion isexposed within the at least one opening, and the first portion isdirectly coupled to a body panel of the vehicle and is directly coupledto the second portion, and wherein the entirety of the attachment rackis positioned longitudinally rearward of a forward end of the operatorseat.
 2. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the first and second portionsare configured to support at least one accessory.
 3. The vehicle ofclaim 1, wherein the second portion is coupled to the first portion. 4.The vehicle of claim 3, wherein the second portion is integral with thefirst portion.
 5. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the first material isa polymeric material and the second material is a metallic material. 6.The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the second portion defines a tie-downmember of the attachment rack.
 7. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein thesecond portion at least partially defines a vertically inner surface ofthe attachment rack.
 8. The vehicle of claim 1, wherein the attachmentrack is supported on at least one of the front end and the rear end ofthe frame.
 9. An all-terrain vehicle, comprising: a plurality ofground-engaging members; a frame supported by the plurality ofground-engaging members and extending along a longitudinal axis; anoperator seat coupled to the frame; and an attachment rack supported bythe frame, the attachment rack having a polymeric portion and at leastone metallic member coupled to the attachment rack and extending withinat least one opening in the polymeric portion, and the polymeric portionis directly coupled to a body panel of the vehicle and is directlycoupled to the at least one metallic member, and wherein the attachmentrack has a first portion positioned longitudinally rearward of a rearend of the operator seat and a second portion extending longitudinallyforward from the first portion and positioned laterally adjacent therear end of the operator seat, and wherein the entirety of theattachment rack is positioned longitudinally rearward of a forward endof the operator seat.
 10. An all-terrain vehicle, comprising: aplurality of ground-engaging members; a frame supported by the pluralityof ground-engaging members and extending along a longitudinal axis; anoperator seat coupled to the frame; and an attachment rack supported bythe frame, the attachment rack having a polymeric surface and at leastone metallic member coupled to the attachment rack and extending withinat least one opening in the polymeric surface, and wherein theattachment rack has a first portion positioned longitudinally rearwardof a rear end of the operator seat and a second portion extendinglongitudinally forward from the first portion and positioned laterallyadjacent the rear end of the operator seat.
 11. The vehicle of claim 10,further comprising a plurality of body panels coupled to the frame andthe attachment rack is coupled to at least one of the plurality of bodypanels.
 12. The vehicle of claim 11, wherein the at least one body panelhas a width extending in a lateral direction perpendicular to thelongitudinal axis, and the attachment rack has a width extending in alateral direction perpendicular to the longitudinal axis, the width ofthe attachment rack being less than the width of the at least one bodypanel.
 13. The vehicle of claim 10, wherein the attachment rack ispositioned longitudinally rearward of the operator seat and theplurality of ground-engaging members includes at least one rear wheel,and a longitudinally rearward-most end of the attachment rack ispositioned forward of a longitudinally rearward-most end of the rearwheel.
 14. The vehicle of claim 10, wherein the metallic member ispositioned vertically inward from the polymeric surface.
 15. The vehicleof claim 10, wherein the attachment rack is configured to support anaccessory vertically above the polymeric surface.
 16. The vehicle ofclaim 10, wherein the at least one metallic member is positionedlongitudinally rearward of the operator seat.
 17. The vehicle of claim10, wherein the at least one metallic member extends generallyperpendicularly to the longitudinal axis.
 18. The vehicle of claim 10,wherein the at least one metallic member has at least one of a generallycircular cross-section and a generally rectangular cross-section.